Goldsmiths researchers take centre stage at MoogFest 2017

Article

Written byChris Smith

Published on25 May 2017

Goldsmiths, University of London was well represented at the world’s most prestigious festival of music, art and technology this month.

Dr Rebecca Fiebrink

MoogFest 2017, which was held in Durham, North Carolina from 18-21 May, hosted workshops from Dr Mick Grierson and Dr Rebecca Fiebrink from the Goldsmiths Computing Department, as well presentations from PhD student Tom Richards.

The event, at which Goldsmiths was a Future Thought program partner, brought together individuals and institutions at the cutting edge of contemporary music to explore new technologies and networks that will shape how music will be made and experienced in the future.

Richards showcased his new version of the ‘mini-oramics’ machine, based on a concept originally developed by electronic music pioneer Daphne Oram.

Richards’ machine, which plays sounds from drawn shapes, is a completion of Oram’s unfinished design from the 1960s.

Dr Mick Grierson and Dr Rebecca Fiebrink showcased two more pieces of technology developed at Goldsmiths.

In their workshop, ‘AI for Synths’, they displayed their machine learning toolkit for real-time interaction, ‘RAPID-MIX-API’, as well as online coding platform ‘codecircle’.

The trio are all key members of the London-based Embodied Audiovisual Interaction Group at Goldsmiths.

The group produces new technology for creative industries, based on their research in digital signal processing, real-time interaction and machine learning.